


I'm Royalty!

by AwkwardOrbit



Category: LOONA (Korea Band)
Genre: F/F, Fluff and Humor
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-15
Updated: 2019-06-30
Packaged: 2020-05-12 08:37:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,305
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19225570
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AwkwardOrbit/pseuds/AwkwardOrbit
Summary: Summer vacations are the best to be lazy and Hyejoo could be doing exactly that if it wasn't because of this tiny blonde intruder that woke her up banging on the door and broke into her house claiming to be a princess who had just ran away from her kidnappers.Hyejoo is pretty sure she has ran away from an asylum, though.





	1. Good morning?

She had the whole house for herself, her parents had gone on a roadtrip she didn't want to be part of and because they thought she was already responsible enough, they let her stay alone, which gave Hyejoo the liberty to screw up her sleeping schedule by staying awake until dawn playing videogames with her online friends without anyone waking her up two hours after she goes to sleep... or that was what she expected.

 

The sound of the doorbell ringing woke her up, followed by her dog barking, but she ignored it all by covering her ears with her pillow. It had been barely an hour since she went to sleep and she didn't appreciate noisy neighbors. However, the constant ringing soon turned into banging, and a panicked voice asking to please open the door. Hyejoo sat down, groaning loudly in annoyance, there would better be something important, a life or death situation, or else she'd definitely punch whoever was behind that door.

She took her time on putting her shirt back on and finding her flip flops before going down stairs. ''Yo, Nala, shut it.'' She pushed the dog gently, just enough to make her quiet and open the door. The moment she did, though, she almost gets swept away by someone storming through. Hyejoo stood there a couple of seconds, blinking rapidly and trying to process what had just happened. Nala had ran away after the intruder and kept barking. It took her a while, but she finally rushed to the living room, peeking inside just to see a kid standing on top of the table, scared of the dog. Actually, she didn't look like a kid, she looked like she was around Hyejoo's age, she was just... tiny.

 

''Make it stop!''

 

Hyejoo opened her mouth in disbelief. This girl ran into her house, stepped on her table, and now was ordering her to stop Nala from barking? ''No?'' She replied. ''Who the fuck are you?'' It seemed like the question offended her, because she gasped dramatically.

 

''I'm Park Chaewon, the heiress from the Loona Kingdom! And I'm ordering you to make it stop!'' She said, pointing a finger at the dog.

 

Loona Kingdom? ''...Nala, keep her in place, I'm calling the police.''

 

''W-what!?'' Hyejoo was ready to run to her room and get her phone, but again, the girl yelled at her. ''No! Stop right there, it's an order!''

 

She closed her eyes for a moment and sighed deeply. ''This is ridiculous.'' She muttered to herself, turning around to face the girl again. Kicking her out was probably going to be easy, she looked pretty weak, and with that in mind, she approached her. For a moment the girl smirked triumphantly, just until Hyejoo held her legs and carried her over her shoulder like if she was a potato sack, then, she started yelling again.

 

''No, no, no! Get off me! Let me down! I'm going to fall, I'm going to fall!'' Hyejoo could feel her punching her back, but it felt more like a light touch. ''I'm a princess! You shall treat me as such!''

 

Hyejoo squinted her eyes. ''Alright.'' Without warning, she threw her to the sofa. ''You're down, princess.'' She mocked her, crossing her arms and staring. The girl looked so shocked that she had managed to put her over her shoulder on the first place, her expression was kind of funny and she was breathing ragedly. Just then Hyejoo noticed that the white dress she was wearing was torn in some places, and that the palm of her left hand was scratched. ''Now... who are you?'' She asked again, hoping for a coherent answer this time.

 

''Park Chaewon, the princess of the Loona Kingdom!'' The girl insisted. Hyejoo had never been good at Geography in school, but she was pretty sure there wasn't such a place named ''Loona Kingdom''.

 

''Yeah, and I'm batman.''

 

''Are you?''

 

''Wha- no?'' She replied. The more she talked to this girl, the more confused she was. ''Are you schizophrenic?''

 

''Am not!'' Chaewon exclaimed while she fixed her dress. ''I'm telling you I'm a princess! I ran away from my kidnappers! My kingdom is in danger and I need to go back, now!'' She explained, as if it made any sense. ''Take me back!''

 

It didn't matter how much Hyejoo insisted, this girl kept saying the same thing over and over again. Maybe she really was crazy and she hadn't ran away from bad guys but from a mental hospital. Anyhow, Hyejoo's conclusion was pretty clear.

 

''...You're out of your mind.''


	2. Sleeping bag

It took a while, but things finally calmed down. Nala was no longer barking to the intruder, instead, she had kind of befriended her and was currently asking for cuddles, which left Hyejoo on her own, because obviously the germa shepherd didn't want this girl out of the house anymore. She sighed in exasperation, massaging her temple as if that was going to help her think better. She had grown tired of interrogating this girl, since she always gave the same answer and seemed confident about it, so now she didn't know what to do.

Chaewon (if that was her real name) didn't want her to call the police and Hyejoo was afraid to disobey because even though she didn't look like a threat, she looked mentally unstable and who knew what she could do. If anyone from her school found out she was scared of this tiny, doll-looking, clearly weak girl, they wouldn't actually believe it.

 

She could call her parents, inform them about the situation and ask for advice, but she didn't want to ruin their vacations over something she could handle herself, because she knew that if she called them saying someone broke into their house they'd freak out and cancel their trip. Hyejoo might be mean sometimes, but she didn't have the heart to kick this girl out of her house and leave her on the streets wearing a torn dress and, on top of that, being injured. Now that she thought about it... ''So... Chaewon.'' She called her. ''Don't you have a place to stay or something?'' Hyejoo questioned, quirking an eyebrow. ''Money?''

 

Chaewon pointed at herself. ''I was kidnapped on my pajamas.'' She replied.

Those were pajamas? Hyejoo wanted to ask, but decided against it. If those were her pajamas then it made sense she had no money on her, hell, it made sense even for a princess. ''Don't you have a car or something? Maybe a plane? I really need to go back home.''

 

''A plane-'' Hyejoo repeated in disbelief. Perhaps this girl wasn't a princess, but she sure as hell was spoiled. ''My parents' old campervan is in the garage...'' She said, not sure if that answer could be enough for Chaewon. Her parents would usually take the campervan if they went on a road trip, but since this summer neither Nala nor her joined them, they just took the car.

 

''Great! Then you can take me!''

 

''I think the fuck not.'' She didn't give Chaewon any time to keep rambling. There was no way Hyejoo was driving without supervision, she got her license around a month ago and she barely made it. Also, she had no idea of where they were supposed to go. ''Look- I can... let you stay here for a couple of days, okay? Just until you find another place.'' She reluctantly said.

 

The girl's enthusiastic expression fell, it seemed like she wasn't satisfied with the answer. Of course she wouldn't if what she wanted was to go back... to wherever she came from on the first place. ''Oh, okay... Thank you, I guess.''

 

She guess?  _Guess_? Hyejoo took a deep breath, she had never had a roommate apart from Nala, not had she ever dealt with a ''princess'' and she wasn't sure if she had enough patience for it. ''Follow me.'' She said, passing by without looking at her.

She heard her standing up clumsily and rushing behind her, though.

They walked upstairs to Hyejoo's room. If she was going to let this girl stay here, at least she needed to wear clean clothes. Without saying anything, she approached the closet and started searching for some clothes. There was nothing that would possibly fit her, considering their clear height difference, but at least she'd be comfortable and not get all the furniture dirty. ''Here, they might go a little loose on you, though.'' She said, offering her a plain black t-shirt and black sporty shorts with a couple of white stripes on the sides of each leg. 

 

However, instead of taking the clothes, Chaewon made a face. ''Uh... don't you have something more colorful?'' She asked.

 

''No.'' Hyejoo simply replied, shoving the clothes in her arms.

Chaewon staggered back a little and looked at the clothes like if they were an alien, then she left them on the bed and stretched her arms to the sides, staring at Hyejoo. She quirked an eyebrow as a silent question.

 

''Dress me up.''

 

She blinked a couple of times, opening and closing her mouth. For a moment she was going to curse, but she managed to restrain herself from doing so by biting her lower lip and chuckling nervously. She took the clothes and shoved them back in Chaewon's arms. ''The bathroom is at the end of the hallway, the door on the left. Now, go change.'' She explained with fake calmness and smiling sarcastically.

 

Chaewon looked offended for a second until she realized that Hyejoo's sarcastic smile was turning into some kind of deathly glare, just then the hugged the clothes close to her chest and rushed out of the room. ''Okay, thank you!''

 

Hyejoo shook her head and sighed deeply, her gaze falling on Nala that was looking at her intently. ''What? We wouldn't have this problem if you'd have scared her off.'' The dog huffed like if she was offended by the comment, so Hyejoo rolled her eyes.

Now she needed to find her a place to sleep because she wasn't going to let her sleep on her parents' bedroom and the sofa wasn't comfortable enough. Maybe there would be some old sleeping bag in the garage, the situation made her thankful of having parents that loved camping and anything that had to do with it, really. ''You stay here and keep an eye on the shortie, got it?'' Nala barked. ''Good.''

Anyone could think she was crazy for talking to the dog, but she was sure the german shepherd could understand her just fine. They had always had this special bond ever since Hyejoo insisted on rescuing her from the shelter two years ago, sometimes she felt like the dog actually knew she had saved her from being euthanized.

 

The garage probably was the worst place of the house, she hardly went there and tried to avoid it as much as she could because it was so full of things, mostly useless things, so many useless things that people could think her parents are some kind of crazy scientists, but no, they're just weird. Don't get her wrong, she loved them like that, it was just that sometimes it was too much.

The shelves were full of different items from different countries, her dad's tools, her old toys from when she was little and a bunch of new looking toys they bought for Nala but she had never used. Searching for anything in that place was literally a nightmare and Hyejoo was afraid that she'd break something by accident, like one of the multiple cups from her mom's collection. It took her a while and a lot of carefulness to find what she was looking for, the sleeping bag, but finally she did. It had a tear in one side, but since they were going to be using it inside, it didn't really matter.

When she went back upstairs to her room, Chaewon was looking around curiously and Hyejoo stood there for a second, looking at her until the girl tried to open a very specific drawer from her desk. ''Hey!'' She threw the sleeping bag to the floor and rushed to stop Chaewon by holding her wrist. The blonde got surprised and yelped, staring at her with wide eyes. ''Don't touch my stuff.'' She firmly said.

 

''Jesus, okay, I'm sorry.'' Chaewon apologized while pulling away from the grip and caressing her wrist, it didn't sound like a real apology, though. She obviously wasn't sorry. ''I was just curious! Why are there so many stickers on that drawer? Doesn't your mother get mad at you for ruining the furniture?''

 

''Have you read the stickers?'' She asked. Just then Chaewon looked down at the drawer again, most of the stickers said things like ''Danger inside, don't open''.

 

She quirked an eyebrow. ''What's inside?''

 

Hyejoo rolled her eyes. ''Porn, there is porn in there.'' She replied. Chaewon's expression was so funny that she was having a hard time keeping a straight face.

Obviously, there wasn't porn inside the drawer, but there was no way she'd tell this random girl what was inside. She turned around to get the sleeping bag and handled it to Chaewon. ''This is your bed, place it wherever you want, I don't care.''

 

''This... is a bed?''

 

''Yes.''

 

''...A dog's bed?''

 

Her gaze fell on Nala, and for a second Hyejoo wondered if this girl had been living under a rock her whole life. Who the hell didn't know what a sleeping bag was? ''No... No, it's a bed. You use it when you go camping.''

 

''Oh! Are we going camping? I've never-''

 

''No!'' Hyejoo raised her voice out of stress, then took a deep breath to try to calm herself. ''Listen, I don't have more beds, okay? So you're going to put that on the floor.'' She said, pointing at the sleeping bag. ''And sleep there. Inside the house. We're not going camping, got it?''

 

There was silence for a moment as they stared at each other. Hyejoo was waiting for an answer, she was waiting for Chaewon to tell her that yes, she understood what she meant, but instead of that, she heard the girl's stomach growling. Chaewon's cheeks turned slightly pink and she reached to rest a hand over her stomach. ''I haven't eaten in three days.'' She mumbled, still looking at Hyejoo.

 

''You-'' Hyejoo blinked. ''Why the hell didn't you say that on the first place!?''

 

 

 


	3. Ordinary

Hyejoo spent the day teaching Chaewon very basic surviving skills that literally every human on Earth should know about, like for instance, fold her clothes or cut the meat by herself, because at first she wanted Hyejoo to do it but of course she refused. It had barely been a day and Hyejoo wasn't sure if she could handle anymore of this. At least the blonde beauty had completely passed out from exhaustion and it was quiet and calm again. The more time she spent with this girl, the more surrealistic everything seemed, she was at the verge of having an existential crisis, seriously.

She looked down at Chaewon, who was sleeping in the sleeping bag, though at first she just lied down on top of it instead of getting inside. Like that she seemed like a whole different person, not ordering her to do things here and there or acting like a spoiled kid, she looked normal, even cute.

Hyejoo couldn't sleep, though, so she decided to do her own research and make sure this girl sleeping on the floor of her bedroom wasn't lying even if she still believed she was. She took her phone, put the brightness at the lowest, put her specs on and opened google to search for this Loona Kingdom Chaewon kept talking about practically the whole day.

 

Something popped up, it surprised her, she genuinely thought it was a place this crazy girl had just imagined in her head, wikipedia really did have everything, huh?

She opened the web and started reading. Apparently it was a very new country and it had barely 20,000 people living in it, it was formed for three islands connected by big, long,  _huge_ bridges, according to google maps. Hyejoo blinked, it really looked like a place from a fairytale. Could a place with 20,000 people even be considered a country? She wasn't one to judge because she pretty much failed Geography for three years straight. Thank God, Heejin, one of her internet friends, started helping her with the subject.

There wasn't any information about the princess of the country going missing nor being kidnapped, but she remembered what Chaewon had said about keeping it a secret so that the people in the country wouldn't freak out. 

 

Hyejoo looked down at her, if this was really what was going on, she wouldn't be able to help her in any way unless she wanted to go to the police. Because, honestly, who was she? Just an ordinary teenager with depressive tendencies and a resting bitch face. Yeah, she was pretty damn strong, but how was that possibly going to help? Chaewon didn't seem too bothered about her supposed situation, she had fallen asleep pretty quickly and was even snoring softly. Perhaps she was just too tired, it made sense if she really had been running away for three days and hadn't eat anything at all, either.

 

She sighed, still not knowing what to do about... this. She had already let Chaewon stay in her house and if she really was who she said she was then... how the hell was she going to kick her out? Were her kidnappers looking for her? Would she get mistaken as her kidnapper and go to jail? She didn't have a way to know, since she couldn't find anything about who ruled the country. 

 

But... she knew someone that may know where to search.

Hyejoo didn't waste anytime and despite that it was around 1am, she decided to text Heejin. The girl was probably watching Naruto for the nth time or playing Budokai with her girlfriend, anyway. She just texted a simple ''yo'' and just as she thought, it didn't take more than a minute until her favorite weeb replied.

 

HeejOut: Yo!!!

HeejOut: You've been offline all day

HeejOut: What's the tea

 

Joo: i've an incredibly weird request for you

 

HeejOut: Weirder than that time you asked me to find your crush's ig?

 

Hyejoo choked on air, she covered her mouth to mumble the sound, she didn't want Chaewon to wake up and be loud again. It was tiring.

 

Joo: that's not weird but yeah.. i need you to find me the name of the princess of the Loona Kingdom

 

HeejOut: The what-

HeejOut: Is that like a new game or sumn

HeejOut: didn't see it at E3

 

Joo: no, it's a real place and there is this girl sleeping on my floor that claims to be the princess of that place

 

HeejOut: THERE IS A GIRL SLEEPING ON YOUR FLOOR?????

 

Joo: alright that's it please find me the names thanks love you have a good night bye

 

She turned the notifications off and left the phone on the nightstand, she wasn't going to clarify anything to Heejin just yet, honestly, she was too tired to even recall all the shit that had happened in the last fourteen hours, she had barely processed it. 

Hyejoo didn't sleep much that night, and she was used to pull all-nighters but this time she was so emotionally tired that by the time the sun rised, she was hoping someone would just knock her out so she could get some sleep.

 

Tired of lying on the bed, she decided to get up and take Nala for her morning walk. It took them an hour, but when she came back home, Chaewon was still completely asleep, she had somehow opened the sleeping bag while moving around and now she was lying like a starfish.The german shepherd felt content of seeing her and so she approached her, Hyejoo didn't stopped Nala from liking all over the blonde's face, it eventually woke her up and she didn't look pleased. ''He- hey! Stop..!''

Honestly, the taller girl was having fun watching the scene, but at this point she was also really hungry, so without saying a thing or giving Chaewon any time to complain about her not controlling the dog, she left the room. Chaewon followed suit, standing up clumsily and still half asleep then rushing to the kitchen with Hyejoo.

 

Hyejoo tied her hair up, originally she was planning to cook something for both of them, but she was too exhausted for that and instead made the decision of taking the milk carton from the fridge, cereals from the cabinet and pour it all on a bowl. She leaned against the counter, took a spoon and started eating. Meanwhile the short girl stood there, awkwardly looking at her, it looked like she had no clue of what to do. Hyejoo pointed the spoon around the room. ''You can have whatever you want.'' She said, still munching.

This was the usual for her, nothing out of the ordinary. Her parents were always kind of chaotic so sometimes they woke up late and no one had enough time to make a proper breakfast or they just felt too lazy to prepare it... but apparently that wasn't how things worked for Chaewon.

 

''Aren't we supposed to... sit?'' She said.

 

She shrugged. ''Sit if you want.''

Chaewon did sit down, but she didn't get any food. After swallowing, Hyejoo sighed and left her half empty bowl of cereals on the counter to prepare something for the blonde. It was clear that she didn't know how to  _live_. After having to teach her how to use a knife and cut meat, Hyejoo didn't even want her to try cooking, she probably had no idea of how it worked, either. Since she was using a bowl, she let Chaewon use her star wars cup, putting it in front of her and pouring some milk on it. She hoped her dad wouldn't get angry at her for giving his dinosaur cookies to a total stranger. ''Listen, you can't act like this outside.''

 

''Because... people will find out I'm a princess?'' Chaewon asked, genuinely curious.

 

''No, because people are going to think you're dumb and they'll bully you-'' Her cellphone buzzing interrupted her speech. She looked at it, it was an audio from Heejin, so she played it hoping to get some good news, and indeed, she did.

 

''Yo, Hyejoo-yah! I've found the stuff you were looking for, and some more, so come to discord 'kay?''

 

''Who's that?''

 

Hyejoo smiled and put her phone bac into her pocket. ''You'll see, c'mon, finish eating, you've got a lot of explaining to do, princess.''


	4. I told you!

''P-please don't kill me!''

 

Jungeun closed her eyes a moment and sighed deeply. This was utterly ridiculous. These people kidnapped the princess, tried to blackmail the queen, and now they were begging for their lives after failing completely... ''Lucky you, we've a very strict politic about murdering.'' She said, feigning a smile. ''Othersiwe I'd have cut your tongue and slide your throat already. You talk too much.'' That made the man gulp, he was clearly scared, trembling and whatnot. ''However, you don't say anything useful.'' Jungeun squatted down in front of him and stared into his eyes. She wasn't going to kill him, though he definitely deserved a punch. This mission made her specially pissed, because it wasn't just a simply mission without any emotional attachment as it usually would be. She had known the queen since she was little and Chaewon was like a little sister to her, the thought of this people even daring to talk to her made her incredibly annoyed. ''All I need to know... is where your big boss has our princess, yeah? That's all! We might reduce your sentence if you help us.'' She tried negotiating even when it was a blatant lie.

 

The man was so scared that he didn't notice. ''I- I would tell you if I knew w-where she is but-'' He gulped. ''S-she escaped.''

 

She frowned. ''What?'' So they didn't just fail because they got caught by the guard, but also because Chaewon herself had managed to run away... Yeah, this thing was the most ridiculous situation she had ever lived. Jungeun massaged her temples trying to think about what she should say. ''If you're lying I swear to God-''

 

''I'm not! S-she crawled through the ventilation duct, knocked out two of our men and left!''

 

''When?''

 

''F-four days ago...''

 

Chaewon really never failed to impress her, she always acted so naive that sometimes Jungeun wondered if she would actually be a queen, but then she did the most impressive stuff. She blinked a couple of times. ''Four days ago?'' She held him by the collar of his shirt, leaning so close that their noses were almost touching. ''Are your men looking for her?''

 

''Y-yes.''

 

Jungeun clicked her tongue, shoving him back to the floor and standing up. She took her phone out of her pocket to text their chief and tell her the news. It was useless to keep looking for any clues in here if Chaewon had run away. She was smart but knowing her, she most likely didn't have a plan after leaving this damned place. Jungeun fixed her jacket. ''When did you last see her?'' She asked, not even looking at him.

 

''Y-yesterday but that girl is too sneaky! We couldn't catch her, I swear!''

 

''Where?''

 

''U-Uijeongbu...''

 

Well, that was a long distance, they'd better hurry. Jungeun called her men and explained the situation to them just to immediately point with her chin and the handcuffed man laying on the floor behind her and ordering them to get him, too. They had raided the whole place, the princess wasn't there and she had enough information to know where to search... That if Chaewon wasn't still runing around aimlessly. She heard the man yelling, telling her not to forget to reduce his sentence because she promised it.

The thing was, Jungeun never promised it. She wanted all these people locked up just as much as the queen did.

 

 

~~~

 

''See!? I told you!''

 

Hyejoo glanced briefly at Chaewon, it was kind of a glare, honestly, this girl was extremely annoying at times and she had barely spend a day with her. She heard Heejin laughing but ignored all of it, returning her gaze to the screen. Apparently, yes, the princess of that country was named Chaewon, Park Chaewon, and the queen was Park Sooyoung. It took her a while to process what Heejin had explained her, she still couldn't believe this was actually happening. It was something you'd see in movies, not in real life. ''Isn't there a contact number or something?'' Hyejoo asked.

Calling home to let them know the princess safe and sound and tell them where she was seemed like the most rational option. Unfortunately, Heejin shook her head.

 

''I haven't found anything about that, just the names and the family picture. Also, if you wanted to take her home, you'd have to go all the way to Busan and take a ferry to the island... am I wrong, princess?''

 

''Uh... the airport was almost done so maybe we can take a fly!''

 

''Alright, hold up.'' Hyejoo stopped them, frowning. This was getting out of hand. ''First of all, I'm not leaving my house.'' She said. ''Second of all, don't you have a phone number for your palace or something?'' She asked, quirking an eyebrow at Chaewon.

 

It looked like the blonde was thinking, staring at the ceiling for a bit and humming, just to drop her head low and sigh after. ''No, I had the emergecy contact in my phone but the bad guys took it and I don't remember it.''

 

''You don't remember your emergency contact number!?''

 

''I'm bad at Maths!''

 

''You're bad at everything!''

 

''Wow, hey!'' Heejin interrupted their bickering, both girls looked at the screen with a deep frown. She looked at the weirdly. ''Y'all are going to kill each other before anything else happens.'' She said, just as an observation. The whole time they had been on videocall, the new housemates had been bickering, they clearly didn't get along and Hyejoo knew that. ''Hye, sweetheart, wish I could help you but I'm 237 kilometers away so you gotta have to do it yourself.'' She said, looking down at her phone. ''Also, I gotta finish my last assignment so bye.''

 

After that, she hung up. Hyejoo groaned, throwing her head back onto the chair's back. Why did this girl have to knock on her door? Just  _why_ ?

This was not the idea of a lazy summer she had in mind, this was the total opposite. She looked over at Chaewon, who was strangely quiet and hadn't tried to keep the fight going after Heejin hung up, she wasn't looking at Hyejoo either, she was kind of sulky. Hyejoo assumed it might be because of the family picture, she probably missed her mom which was understandable if that was all she had ever known. If she was kidnapped, escaped and ended up on an unknown place with those guys still chasing after her, she'd most likely feel like shit, too. It wasn't like she was going to admit that, though. 

For some reason the atmosphere was awkward, so much that Nala was staring at them from the floor, as if waiting for them to fight again or something. Hyejoo stood up. ''I'm going to take Nala for her walk.''

 

Chaewon didn't reply.

 


	5. Plans

Chaewon hadn't uttered a word since they ended the call with Heejin and as peaceful as it was, Hyejoo felt like the silence wasn't right. She didn't complain about anything the whole day, now Hyejoo was preparing dinner and she was just curled up in the sofa, hugging her knees and watching TV. She wasn't even paying attention to Nala, that was probably the most worrisome thing. Hyejoo poured the ramen she had made into two different bowls, took the chopsticks and walked to the living room, leaving Chaewon's on the table in front of her. ''Here, eat before it gets cold.'' She said, then she sat on the other side of the sofa.

She glanced at the girl to see how she took the bowl and stared at it for a moment before start to eat rather lifelessly. Clearly there was something wrong, but Hyejoo had never been good at comforting people, she was more used to confront them, besides she didn't know what would possibly make this girl feel better, she didn't even know what was wrong on the first place, so there was little she could do.

 

They just ate in silence, Hyejoo changed the channel a couple of times but Chaewon didn't complained about that, either. It seemed like she really wasn't paying attention at her surroundings. She took a deep breath, yes, Hyejoo was awkward but there is a certain limit of uncomfortable silence she could take and after eight hours of it, she was at the verge of a breakdown. ''Look-''

 

''I'll leave tomorrow.''

 

''What?'' Her expression dropped, she was confused. What was she talking about? Leave where? She had nowhere to go, no money to travel, she had nothing.

 

Chaewon rested the bowl on her knees and sighed. ''Listen, I know you don't like me and I know I'm useless and a bother.'' She said, still not even glancing at Hyejoo. ''I'll just... leave in the morning and figure things out myself.'' Oh. Hyejoo didn't know what to reply, she was too stunned to even process the conversation and before she could react in any way, Chaewon who was met with silence, stood up. ''I'm going to sleep... Have a goodnight, Hyejoo.''

 

She didn't like the way she said her name, not at all. Hyejoo watched her leave and after a couple of seconds turned off the tv and stared blankly at the screen.

Sure she had been complaining about this girl that, indeed, didn't know to do anything, but that didn't mean she thought of her as a bother. Yes, Chaewon was definitely not part of the summer holidays' plans yet, she had to admit that the past two days had been interesting and even fun sometimes. Also, she didn't want this girl to get kidnapped again, she got to escape once but that didn't mean she could escape twice, and wandering on her own through places she had no clue of... it clearly wasn't a good idea. She hated to admit it, but she was worried.

 

Hyejoo remained sitting on the sofa for a while, she lost track of time, honestly. Chaewon had made a decision and just by seeing how stubborn she had been the whole time, it was obvious that she wasn't going to change her mind, but Hyejoo couldn't just let her go by herself if those people were still chasing after her, could she? There was no way she could convince her of going to the police or staying here, either, so she gave up.

She stood up and walked upstairs into the room with careful steps not to wake the blonde girl up, followed by Nala. Instead of going to bed, she sat down on her desk and turned her computer on. She was going to need Heejin for a moment, and maybe Jiwoo, too. Hyejoo had assumed she wasn't going to get much sleep today, either, but little did she care, she had a drawer full of snacks and a new bottle of coke to spend the night planning the whole roadtrip.

Yes, she wasn't so pleased of having to leave her house when she didn't want to go on a roadtrip with her parents on the first place because she just wanted calmness and quiet, but she wasn't going to let Chaewon go alone, either. No way.

 

It had been two days, but she actually cared about this fragile looking girl sleeping on her floor.

In fact... She stared at her for a moment before standing up and approaching the sleeping bag. Hyejoo squatted in front of her, opening the bag carefully, though this princess right there slept like a rock. She put a hand under her knees and another one on the back of her neck to lift her up, if she wasn't going to use her bed, might as well let this girl sleep on an actual comfortable place. Even her dead height felt like nothing, it was easy for her to lift her up and place her on the bed, probably the lightest thing Hyejoo had lifted up in years apart from Nala.

 

She rested her hand on her hips and sighed deeply. By the time she went back to her desk, the computer was already on and discord had turned on by itself, too. She had a bunch of messages, of course she did, she had barely use it for the past two days, too busy taking care of Chaewon to even play a single game on LoL.  Thank god both Jiwoo and Heejin were online, because she wasn't going to be able of doing all of this for tomorrow by herself.

 

Joo: can't talk, Chae is sleeping

Joo: I need y'all to help me tho

 

HeejOut: sup

 

Wooming: YOU GOT A GIRLFRIEND???

 

Joo: KSLHFKLSHDFKL NO

Joo: long story short I have a princess in my house and I need to take her back to her country

 

HeejOut: So you've decided to help huh ;)

 

Joo: stfu.. are you gonna help me or nah?

 

Wooming: of course :D

 

HeejOut: damn right

 

Hyejoo smirked. She might not have that many friends in real life, people at school lived to make fun of her for having the parents she had (who, by the way, she wouldn't change for anyone else) or they were too intimidated by her looks to even talk to her, which wasn't cool, because Hyejoo just  _couldn't_ start a conversation, but she had her online friends and they definitely felt more real than any dumbass teenager in her school. Heejin and Jiwoo had plenty of social life but they were always there to give her a hand if she needed it, or just to keep her company if she wasn't feeling well. Hell, Jiwoo even sent her money once to help with Nala's surgery. Basically, the german shepherd could run at full speed without getting hurt again thanks to her.

She spent the night explaining the whole situation with details to both of them and just like that time, Jiwoo offered her some money so she couldn't have to spend all her savings on this trip. Hyejoo, however, rejected the offer. She didn't really mind spending all the money she currently had on this, she could get a job at the local shelter again, both animals and people in there loved her, it was an easy job. 

 

Hyejoo didn't have a single minute of sleep that night, and neither did her friends.


	6. Pack your bags

Hyejoo watched in amusement how Chaewon squealed and punched the air after she threw a pillow to her face in an attempt to wake her up. The blonde looked around nervously, looking confused over the situation until she spotted the taller girl standing in front of her with a teasing smirk across her lips. ''Rise and shine.'' She said.

 

Chaewon's frown deceased and changed for a look of disappointment (perhaps sadness). She sighed. ''Right.'' Was all she mumbled as she scratched her nape. ''I will... use the bathroom and then leave.''

 

''Deng! Wrong!'' Hyejoo threw a backpack by her side and put her hand inside one of her pockets. '' _We_ are leaving. Pack whatever clothes you like because...'' She took her time, she had been waiting to do this all night. Hyejoo waved a couple of plane tickets in front of Chaewon. ''I'm taking you home.''

Her eyes grew wide as she stared at Hyejoo, she didn't say a thing, instead she stood up and launched on the taller girl. ''Wow, hey!'' She stumbled back slightly and looked down at Chaewon. Her face was hidden. ''Are you- are you crying?''

 

Chaewon looked up at her, she wasn't crying, she had a big toothy smile across her face. ''Thank you so much, you're a hero, seriously!''

 

She had never been called anything but creepy by other people, so this was pretty new for her and, damn, she was embarrassed. She looked away and pushed Chaewon gently. ''Alright, alright... just... get whatever stuff you need while I look for the keys.''

 

''Wait.'' She stopped her, holding her wrist loosely. ''Uhm... why?''

 

Why? Hyejoo quirked an eyebrow, she was going to ask what she meant, but then understood just by the look the princess was giving her. ''Well, you are annoying and clueless and it makes me pissed off because I have little to no patience but- that doesn't mean I want you to get kidnapped again or anything... Actually I... these past two days have been pretty interesting, honestly. It's just, I guess I'm not used to having people that aren't my parents around.''

 

Chaewon smiled teasingly. ''So, you're worried about me.''

 

Hyejoo sarcastically smiled back at her, took the backpack from the floor and shoved it in her arms. ''That's not what I said.'' She replied. She was worried, of course she was, not just about Chaewon but also about herself. She wasn't sure of how she'd react if they encountered these bad guys on their way to the kingdom. She left the room and went to her parents' instead. The keys shouldn't be too far away.

 

It didn't take her more than five minutes to find them and instead of checking on Chaewon, she went straight downstairs to the garage and tried the campervan. It got started right away and there was enough fuel for them to get to a gas station and recharge. She smirked, proud of herself as she tapped her fingers over the wheel. This was going to be a wild ride, mostly because she was still unsure about her driving skills... Sure she had driven a couple of times around town, but the actual road was a whole new story. ''Hyejoo, Hyejoo..!'' She sighed deeply and came out of the campervan, walking to the stairs to see what Chaewon wanted, just to find the blonde girl trying to carry not just the backpack she gave her, but another one and a suitcase all by herself. ''Help?''

 

Hyejoo couldn't help but chuckle, at least she was now trying to do things by herself instead of ordering her to do it all. She helped the small girl by taking her backpack and the suitcase, and then they put it all inside the campervan along with Nala. She wasn't about to leave her dog alone at home, no way. But she should, at least, leave a note to her parents just in case they arrived before she did. She walked to the kitchen with a piece of paper and a pen in her hands, wondering what she should write. Should she explain them the situation?  _Hey, mom, dad, I'm out taking a kidnapped princess back to her home. The kingdom's fate is on my hands, wish me luck._  

Hell no, they would lose their minds if she did that. Perhaps something simple, an innocent lie that would definitely worry them but not too much.  _Hey, mom, dad! I know I told you I didn't want to leave the house this summer, but Heejin and Jiwoo thought that it'd be a good chance to meet now that none of us are busy. Please don't ground me when I get back home. Love, your very good daughter Hyejoo._ Yeah, that was good enough, hopefully.

Now that she thought about it, they'd pass by Heejin's city on their way. Maybe they could make a small stop and meet her for a bit. They had been friends for four years yet they had never met in real life, now they had a chance, didn't they?

She stuck the note to the fridge and stared at it for some seconds, then she sighed and walked away. Hyejoo's life had always been kind of strange because of her parents', they always took her hicking when she was a baby and eventually, the older she got, the more dangerous the adventures were. She would never forget last year when they went skydiving... lord, that was the scariest thing she had ever done, even more scary than this, but this one was definitely the strangest thing of them all. She took a deep breath, put her seatbelt on and started the car. ''I'm gonna need you to lead me.'' She said.

 

Chaewon smiled at her and held Hyejoo's phone and raised her fist. ''Leave it all to me!''

 

''I don't know if I want to...'' Hyejoo muttered. Giving all the troubles the princess had been causing, she was a 99% sure they were going to get lost at some point.

 

''Believe it or not...'' Chaewon leaned closer. ''I know how to read maps. I'm homeschooled.''

 

She quirked an eyebrow, glancing at her questioningly. It sounded like she was bragging about it. ''Uh... okay?'' She said. ''So, are you gonna give me directions or what?''

 

''Ah, right!'' Chaewon's expression changed for one of determination the moment her eyes laid on the map from Hyejoo's phone. ''Left road!'' She exclaimed, pointing a finger at the front. It was unnecessarly dramatic, but Hyejoo didn't want to make her upset again with one of her comments, so she simply sighed and obeyed.

She was damn sure this was going to be the longest road trip of her life.


End file.
